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Synonyms

autobiography

American  
[aw-tuh-bahy-og-ruh-fee, -bee-, aw-toh-] / ˌɔ tə baɪˈɒg rə fi, -bi-, ˌɔ toʊ- /

noun

plural

autobiographies
  1. a history of a person's life written or told by that person.


autobiography British  
/ ˌɔːtəʊbaɪˈɒɡrəfɪ, ˌɔːtəbaɪ- /

noun

  1. an account of a person's life written or otherwise recorded by that person

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

autobiography Cultural  
  1. A literary work about the writer's own life. The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin and Isak Dinesen's Out of Africa are autobiographical.


Other Word Forms

  • autobiographer noun

Etymology

Origin of autobiography

First recorded in 1790–1800; auto- 1 + biography

Explanation

You are writing an autobiography when you write your own life story. A writer who writes an autobiography is like a painter who paints a self-portrait. If you intend to write your autobiography one day, it might be a good idea to start recording notes about your life in a diary. The author Gertrude Stein was being clever when she poked fun at the very idea of autobiography when she wrote her own memoirs but titled them The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas, instead of The Autobiography of Gertrude Stein.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing autobiography

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

That year Kershaw also released an autobiography entitled No Off Switch, detailing his life and career.

From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026

The daily diary is distinct from a formal autobiography.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 7, 2026

But she has also taken on several money-spinning projects including a documentary called "Melania," made in a multi-million-dollar deal with Amazon, and an audiobook of her autobiography that is narrated by AI.

From Barron's • Mar. 25, 2026

Segal’s first novel, “Other People’s Houses,” is a precise, objectively observed recasting of her autobiography that empathetically depicts the five families that fostered her in England.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 18, 2026

They asked me lots of questions, trying to see if they could catch me saying something that conflicted with my written autobiography.

From "Lost Boy, Lost Girl" by John Bul Dau